Have you spent a lot of time in isolation during 2020? Perhaps you have used the time to improve yourself beyond where you were last year. I hope you did something more constructive than watching hours of television each night before falling asleep.

In my days of social isolation due to the pandemic, I was able to learn a lot about myself. I discovered that I am a person who likes to have friends around- but also that I needed to center my mind toward achieving the life I have always dreamed of.

Here are my…

 

5 Ways Isolation Gets You Back to Center

1. No pointless chit-chat.

   As much as I enjoy socializing and meeting new people, I really don’t love pointless chit-chat all that much. I am a lover of deep conversations where I can get beyond superficial masks. Chit chat takes time and brain power away from talking about real things. Not wasting time discussing mindless subjects was the first step toward reaching the real version of myself, and I am getting closer to it each day.

2. You can fully relax

   Feeling natural in your own skin is something that you might have taken for granted, depending on what you did before the 2020 Pandemic. I used to work in a very conservative environment, so the only times I could truly be myself was when I laid down my head at night.

   When you don’t feel like you can be yourself in your environment, you are pushed and pulled into the shapes of what other people around you want to see. You can’t relax because you are always trying to hold your new shape, and you don’t feel happy because you are in constant fear of being singled out. Isolation can provide you with the freedom to be yourself; and you will find ways to relax that you never thought were possible.

3. Slow your pace.

   When you are in isolation, you have the ability to slow your pace to a speed that works for you. I am not talking about loafing around all day- I am talking about achieving your goals at a pace that is not dictated by an external force like a boss standing behind you or a work whistle blowing. By moving at your own pace, you are able to take inventory of your process in ways that work for you, since your clock is the only one that matters.

4.  You are forced to think.

   When a trip to the grocery store will take you an extra 25 minutes to wait in a line due to the 2020 Pandemic, you are forced to think a lot more about whether you really need the item.

   It forces you to think whether an extra bottle of Vodka is truly necessary in light of how long and how much effort it will take. When you are in isolation, you may even need to consider things like your spending habits, which may have been in excess before the Pandemic. Being forced to think about how much you really need something is not a bad thing, since you will likely do just fine without it.

5. Promotes gratitude

   Isolation promotes your ability to be grateful for human relationships that fulfill your spirit. One quote that comes to mind is that “distance makes the heart grow fonder”. I think that in the absence of human contact, I have longed for that closeness that comes from great conversations and time spent with friends.

   I am so grateful for the people in my life that have supported me, and this became very clear to me during my time at home. I think that it is important to remember that each one of us is the by-product of every interaction and experience in life; so in order to have a genuine love for yourself, you must embrace those things as well.

 

What did you learn during time spent in isolation? Leave your comments in the section below, and thanks for stopping by.

Stephanie